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GARDAÍ HAVE SAID they will be inspecting pubs to ensure that guidelines for reopening are being observed.
Under Phase 3 of the government’s roadmap which began on Monday, pubs can now open if they serve “substantial meals” that cost at least €9 under guidance issued from Fáilte Ireland.
They are also permitted to impose social distancing rules of just one metre rather than two metres, subject to other mitigation requirements. Patrons must also spend a maximum of 105 minutes in pubs.
In the days since Phase 3 kicked in, there have been numerous reports of people staying in pubs beyond the 105-minute limit and pubs not insisting on serving customers a substantial meal along with alcohol.
In a joint statement today by gardaí and Licensed Vintners Association (LVA), both have called on pubs to adhere to the guidelines. They say separate meals must be provided to each individual drinking alcohol.
“We will seek to engage and encourage all businesses to follow the guidelines and to do the right thing,” Assistant Garda Commissioner Anne Marie Cagney said today.
We will also be undertaking inspections to ensure pubs are respecting the guidelines. Our role is to maintain public order and if there are indications that any such problems are arising we will intervene.
Gardaí do not have any additional powers to close pubs not adhering to guidelines but could likely use public order legislation to ensure compliance with public health advice.
In their statement today, gardaí and the LVA say that pubs who disregard the guidelines “may receive an objection to their licence when it comes up for renewal”.
“Any disregard for public health will be a key consideration when it comes to licence renewals, a process which the authorities are keenly aware all pubs will be subjected to this coming September,” said Donall O’Keeffe of the LVA.
Pubs that don’t serve a substantial meal can reopen from 20 July under Phase 4.
€9 a meal minimum, being enforced by a fükkin tourism board.
Max of 105 minutes in pubs.
Gards saying they’ll be checking but yet tourists coming in from America who aren’t isolating on arrival, aren’t being checked. Have I woken up in an episode of Monty Python?
@Peter ‘Nocky’ Naughnane: I arrived from Rio 10 days ago and have been isolating since. I would have thought those of us arriving from places that are very high risk would have receiced at least one follow up check but I haven’t.
@biggybald: that’s crazy you haven’t had a check up from anyone at all. Fair play to you for doing the 14 day quarantine.
@biggybald: Fair play to you for adhering to the guidelines, shocking that nobody is checking up though, I’m assuming they don’t have the bodies to be checking all concerned.
@Peter ‘Nocky’ Naughnane:
Restaurants open in Phase 3, June 29
Pubs open in Phase 4, July 20
Pubs that can operate as restaurants, meaning they serve food and keep patrons’ stay limited to standard dinner timings, have been given an early start.
Seems quite reasonable.
@Dog Eat Fog: That’s great, thanks for that. Can you also mansplain how a tourism board are enforcing a 60 year old Liquor Act? Thanks in advance.
@Dog Eat Fog: reasonable for reasonable people, clowns will still be clowns.
@Peter ‘Nocky’ Naughnane:
In case you haven’t noticed, we are slowly coming out of a lockdown that was set in motion earlier this year due to a pandemic.
Slowly, step by step, we are now opening up the country, provided the pandemic situation remains under control in the country. It’s being done in a staggered fashion, and we’re calling it “Phases”.
We are currently in Phase 3, with all the restrictions and the loosening up the same that it entails.
Luckily for some, acting the maggot in the comment section of The Journal has been available throughout all stages of this lockdown.
Hope that help.
@Peter ‘Nocky’ Naughnane: I arrived from Canada June 24th as my Dad is quite ill in hospital. I was shocked to see that none of the staff in Dublin airport were wearing masks and very few with gloves. Been adhering to quarantine rules but no check up.
@Dog Eat Fog: thanks for mansplaining the general structure of the situation but you failed to answer my question, in your attempt to ‘act the maggot, in the comments section’. Wanna try again?
@William Blennerhassett: hope your father is doing well William and welcome home. Fair play for following the guidelines, even with such personal strife surrounding your fathers health.
@biggybald: but it’s OK for an illegal immigrant turned asylum seeker to make a trip to Iraq, via Belfast & London – then giving CV19 to a large group of people in Sligo after returning
@biggybald: fair play for doing your duty, it’s very much appreciated
@Peter ‘Nocky’ Naughnane:
No tourism board is enforcing anything anywhere. It was a redundant question on your part as it didn’t refer to anything of actual fact. Maybe you didn’t understand what you were asking?
Fáilte Ireland has developed re-opening guidelines (in consultation with IAAT, and with advice from a number of health bodies), sure. But are they the body enforcing anything? No, that’s not what they do, and that’s not how it works. I’d be surprised if you actually think they do. But hey, stranger things have happened.
@Dog Eat Fog: you’re so informative, maybe not with factual information but words keep coming from you anyway. Paul Kelly, CEO of Fáilte Ireland, has been beating his chest about this for over a week now and taking the credit for enacting these guidelines.
Paul Kelly: “These guidelines are intended to provide clarity to businesses so that they can reopen safely on June 29th. I would like to thank my team and officials from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport who have been working tirelessly on ensuring these guidelines are practical while adhering to public health advice.”
So my original question was ‘how are a tourism board, running the rule over Revenue and the National Excise License Office, who actually grant license applications, that then go before the court.
@Dog Eat Fog: you’re so informative, maybe not with factual information but words keep coming from you anyway. Paul Kelly, CEO of Fáilte Ireland, has been beating his chest about this for over a week now and taking the credit for enacting these guidelines.
Paul Kelly: “These guidelines are intended to provide clarity to businesses so that they can reopen safely on June 29th. I would like to thank my team and officials from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport who have been working tirelessly on ensuring these guidelines are practical while adhering to public health advice.”
So my original question was ‘how are a tourism board, running the rule over Revenue and the National Excise License Office, who actually grant license applications, that then go before the court.
Can anyone explain how exactly viral transmission is being reduced by getting a substantial meal with your pint? I have seen some idiotic regulation over the past decade but this takes the buscuit :D
@Luke Windak: it’s a joke at this stage. Just open the places normally
@Luke Windak: that biscuit will cost you 9 EUR
@Luke Windak: Its not to do with viral transmission. Its an old law to do with serving of alcohol. Pubs which don’t serve food are not permitted to open yet.
@Luke Windak: The meal itself doesn’t reduce risk, but restaurants by their nature don’t tend to get rowdy with a drunken crowd, that’s why pubs are only supposed be operating as restaurants right now. People can enjoy a meal and a drink, and then leave. People going for a boozy session are missing the whole point, increasing their chances of spreading the virus with social distancing going out the window after a few pints, and risking dragging this thing out even longer for all of us.
@Luke Windak: I’d say it’s to discourage people from going on a binge. Two guys here, three gals there, four guys over yon, 5 drinks no food 2 hours later and they’re all mixing together in close proximity. Repeat ad infinitum.
@Luke Windak: Pubs aren’t permitted to open yet, restaurants are permitted to open. The regulation allows for gastro pubs to operate and be treated like restaurants, it’s very simple.
Tourist come first.we Done our bit so back normal looking after pubs.feck the working class..FF is back
@Rochelle: only it is not really that simple and makes no sense when you think about it.
A pub is what it is – a pub whether it serves bar food or not. You can’t expect an average pub goer to behave like those going for their dinner to Shanahans On The Green just because they have a lasagna with their 7 pints
@Rochelle: Thank you. Perfectly explained. And very simple.
@Luke Windak: It really is that simple. A pub is a pub – but pubs that are able to are only meant to be operating as restaurants right now to literally avoid average pub goers behaving like average pub goers. A strategy which is failing because them average pub goers are all “yeeahhh piiiiiints!” and drinking their body weight in Guinness instead of just enjoying a nice meal as they would in any actual restaurant.
@Higginbotham Sean:
What do you mean?
Last timeI was in a pub there were plenty ‘working class’ folk each side of the counter.
@Jayne: I’d give this a swerve Jayne, this lad has his own notions and all the facts in the world won’t change for him his idea that he should be allowed pints right now and as many as he wants for as long as he wants. He’s welcome to all of it. EVERY bit of it.
@Luke Windak: She is wrong. I know plenty of pubs in dublin small little places who are not gastro pubs serving food. Once you have the facilities to serve food you can without having to hold a restaurant licence. Technically all they need is a deep fat fryer, and serve chips burgers sausages ect.
@Olivia Smith: you must be registered and inspected by the HSE beforehand.
@Luke Windak: people are now sharing cutlery and utensils unless disposable items are being used ?
@Luke Windak: it’s not rocket science the objective is to turn pubs into restaurants to provide income. Most people and families can have that meal in the allowed time and not risk the health of others by drinking all evening and slobbering all over the place. Pint with you mean not a meal with your ten pints. Pretty simple logic
All the nitpicking by Covidiots on social media, such as “they only have to offer the option of a meal, you don’t have to buy it” and more, are entirely missing the point. Pubs are supposed to be opening basically AS restaurants. You go to a restaurant, you have a nice meal, you may enjoy a few drinks with it but restaurants don’t tend to get rowdy with drunken people falling around the place, which is precisely why only pubs which can serve a meal in a restaurant-like setting are supposed to be opening. Anyone who thinks they’re gas and sticking it to the man by going with their buddies for a boozy session with one basket of chicken goujons to cover the meal requirement, is an idiot. Congratulations, you got your pints in – but thanks to you and anyone else flouting the spirit of these guidelines, you’re actually increasing the chances of the roadmap being extended and your beloved regular pubs not being able to open on 20 July as planned, if at all (look at Florida, Texas, California, etc). Not to mention the very real risk of spreading the virus and more people dying. Sláinte!
@Jayne: @Jayne: yeah but they’re all heroes with their pints, boasting about it on FB and taking selfies with a pint in a pub. Jackasses
@Jayne: Seriously you cannot compare us to anywhere in the states for the last month
apart from a travel related spike or two our numbers are tiny. Even at the height of covid our numbers of deaths were overstated even Dr Tony said that our mortality rate was only 8% over normal which means our real covid death rate is probably much lower than the 1800 that’s being stated(Rip to those that did)but we errd on the side of caution and it paid off . The states have gone back to a normal way of life when numbers are at their peak and their community rate of infection is very high where ours was always very low.
@Michael McGrath: Our numbers are tiny *because of* the strict lockdown measures we implemented, same for our community infection rate. It did pay off indeed, BUT the virus is still here, and as things open back up again and people move around and socialise more, there is a real risk that the numbers will rise again. It is more important than ever at this stage to be mindful of safety guidelines, social distancing, masks, etc. Our drinking culture is our biggest danger as we come out of lockdown, and people taking the piss by flauting the current guidelines (ie pubs to be considered as restaurants for now) will only exacerbate the problem. Sure, the US is a whole other animal compared to how we’ve managed the crisis, but same principle applies for South Korea, who got their numbers under control, opened pubs and clubs up again, only to swiftly close them again when numbers spiked.
@Jayne: What are you supposed to do they may never get a vaccine for this for all we know are we supposed to cocoon for the rest of our lives. They are telling us we can’t go abroad and yet are allowing in American and UK tourists. They are talking out of the two sides of their mouths. Our economy needs to get going people need to get on with their lives this constant scaremongering and control of people’s lives for the last 4 months needs to come to some sort of conclusion. The amount of people that are going to lose their livelyhoods their homes and God knows what else out of this if the country doesnt open up will far outweigh any damage done by covid. 5 deaths(rip) which were from god knows when and 15 cases or less does not warrant the type of cautiousness you are promoting.
@Jayne: Well said … 100% agree with you !!!
48 year old Single man ( handsome , funny, considerate) seeks single lady ( good looking , interesting) for a cheap 105 minute date .
No they won’t
@Divad Nayr: the pubs who don’t serve food are the ones being shafted by the government for no reason if they don’t do the checks.
Quick, tell the world that a €9 meal cures the Corona Virus.
Not a candles chance in a hurricane will I be buying into the whole €9 for a pint craic.
I’ll wait til the end of the month as an act of protest.
It’s a big joke as it is
@Tom:
It is not obligatory you know – so what is the point of ‘protest’?
Avoid until July 20th Where’s the fun in having to rush your drinks
@Jonny: I think the time limits will remain then too. There are time limits for pubs in a lot of countries. 90 mins in most. CMO as corrected Failte Ireland when their spokesperson said the time limits were only until July 20th, so I wouldn’t hold your breath on them lifting them.
@NotMyIreland: you’d be mistaken on that. When the pubs open on the 20th there will be no time limits!
@Tom Bombdadil: We will see.
@Tom Bombdadil: If that is the case and its only until all pubs open, why do the time limits apply to restaurants?
@NotMyIreland: Because they are now making it up as they go along
@NotMyIreland: So they can fit more servings in.
@NotMyIreland: no time limits now plenty of pubs serving drink only
If anything the substantial meal is more of a risk. People eating out of plates and dishes and using cutlery is just more things needed to be cleaned and more surface for the virus to spread.
And yet its ok for the Irish Greyhound Board (a semi state body) to allow people in for way longer than 105 minutes, and all while “racing behind closed doors”. Bad enough they endanger the poor greyhounds lives for money, now they are happy to endanger the publics lives by openly flouting the rules.
Is there any evidence that eating a meal with your pint will stop you getting the virus. Gob sh.t law made up by gob sh.ts
@Thomas Claffey: Ha ha …… I’d nearly bet your serious
@Thomas Claffey: the food is not about preventing you getting the virus and it never was, you do realise this, dont you? Or do you?
It’s to prevent you (and others just like you) being served copious pints and behaving like a gobdaw.
Considering over half of calls to those supposedly in quarantine by the HSE aren’t being answered. The Guards won’t be able to police the pubs
This is disgraceful, what I eat or drink at a pub is between me and the pub owner.
So what will the Guards do if they find someone bending the rules? Close the place! They’ll do nothing. Every last rule regarding covid19 is advisory. What a useless shower of wasters we have in charge.
@Breasticles:
Spot on. They have no legal powers whatsoever to enter licensed premises for the purpose of enforcing what are only guidelines.
@Breasticles: you are speaking the truth.
We got issued guidelines and unlike most other civilised normal countries we arent able to be advised because as we know it all. Other nations FOLLOW guidelines without the need for enforcement. Not here.
These are guidelines, the police enforce the law, what is the point of them doing checks ?
Keep the pubs closed for Gods sake! This will cause a huge spike in cases otherwise!
@Jonnie Marre: No they won’t.
@Tom Bombdadil: Pubs have proven to be hotspots for the virus across the world, why would here be any different?
There was an article on DublinLive saying that the only law that is legally enforceable is the social distancing law.
https://www.dublinlive.ie/news/gardai-cannot-close-down-pub-18522852#ICID=Android_App_DublinLiveAppShare
@andyearley: a family member who is a guard had said its the HSE who introduced these conditions for pubs/restaurants so its up to them to enforce it . The guards have enough to be doing.
106 mins in the pub and bang you’re infected lol keep to the 105 guideline jesus
@Michael Sherlock: Like all the limitations we have seen; 2m, 15mins, 5km, 20km, 2hour meetings, the 105min is just another limit arbitrarily selected to manage risk. Obviously its not saying 106 mins definitely means you catch the virus. The CMO would be happier with 90mins but government extended to 105 to suit publicans who wanted football fans in. They are just limits set for practical purposes but you definitely need to set some sort of critical limits for risk management purposes.
My local serves a carvery lunch fo €8.99, so can’t open yet.
Welcome back ireland.we are masters at ripping off people
@Higginbotham Sean: id happily charge you €9 for the pint alone.
Pineapple fritters with ice cream make a great feed for only €9. Add a glass of house wine for €6 and it’s a great night out.
@Garreth Byrne: it’s a great 105 minutes.
All this is getting beyond ridiculous, why insist that you have to have a meal with your drink and who set the price . Getting the Gardai to enforce any of the restrictions is treading on dangerous ground , it’ll be a police state before long, do we really want that , we’ve already sacrificed enough for the sake of a ” virus ” that for the majority of people is no worse than a flu . NPHET , the government , H.S.E., and all these agencies like Failte Ireland, the Vintners federation, the federation of Hairdresser’s , teacher’s unions are all working against us , we’re being dictated to as if we were idiots . Who’d go down the pub for 105mins and what publican would ask someone to leave at that time , in effect a note of the time someone enters the pub would have to be taken. Are people so blind that they can’t see what’s happening , it’s not about saving lives , it’s about control , the more people who conform , the more rule’s and regulations they’ll introduce , socialising will be conducted like a military operation which will make it very unpleasant and stressful . Even the G.A.A., are going too far getting children to do an online study of the regulations , filling in questionnaire’s, you know it’s definitely gone too far when you see them sanitising football’s. Young children having to step onto a mat to sanitise their footwear before entering a crèche or pre school , madness.
@Rose Larkin. You are supposed to book a timeslot in a pub so not hard to figure out the time you’re supposed to leave. Restaurants have done this for years. I’ve often been told we have a table but need the table back by a certain time as theres a group booked etc. The GAA teaching its young members vital information regarding the virus and its control is a good thing. The kids in the local creche certainly didn’t have to stand on a sterilising mat, although there’s no problem with that as every extra precaution taken helps to reduce the risk and to keep places open.
People are going out just to take the piss out of this regulation. Too narrow the group of people making these decisions
Absolute rubbish. The Gardai know they have no legal powers to enforce what are only guidelines for pubs serving food. No legal penalties are in place for any breaches of the guidelines. They could object to the renewal of the licence but no Judge in Ireland would refuse the licence as it would be overturned on appeal in the Higher courts. Pure bluster from the Govt.
I. Just wonder what this is All about , They keep calling these ‘ GUIDELINES ” . Well if it is Guidelines, why are the Guards threatening inspections , They either have Law on their side or They haven’t , simple as that. Just more did dinner ing , just like the Holiday fiasco , .
The Gardai policing pubs? Bit of a conflict of interest there, in my experience. Happy to flout licencing laws themselves in rural areas , in particular. Recall in one rural town (other side of Shannon), where ordinary folk were shuffled into the lounge so Gardai from station across road could populate the bar after hours (and presumably , the one good point, after duty!). Not the only occasion. Now this was some years ago, and maybe they are more professional now under new management!
How can a pub owner enforce a procedure as as unworkable as this?
How can the cops go into a pub and try to find out how long the customers were in there and what they ate or drank???
Daft is the only way to describe it
@Ned: Yes, Guards going into pubs , apparently wit a set of GUIDELINES, , have They LAW on the Matter? . If they have, then Spell it out, otherwise forget it.
Hope the young buck in the picture eats the full €9 of baby food
Luke is on it early, good man Luke
@Martin Harte: Journal went and changed the pic from a father and son?
Pub where I live have a menu for €11 and it includes a free pint or cocktail, unless your a regular you can have 2 drinks instead. Local pubs are going to do this as a way of Getty back in business faster.
I don’t suppose the Gardai will be visiting the pubs in Cabra that are flouting all the rules ~~ Seems Cabra is a no-go area !
Nine euro meal makes pubs covid free apparently. What a bunch of Clueless muppets.
Two main pubs in my locality in west Wicklow last night were in full swing. Staff member in one told my they had 82 people in ( way over the safe limit) and like the other main pub most were in at 7.30 ish for the match. Not one single person was asked to leave and many stayed until closing. The big risk won’t be from a few lads coming back from Spain on a Ryanair flight, it’s going to be publicians
they will ya
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